The Beggar King
by blackpearldown
Summary: Viserys III Targaryen turns out to be alive after being 'crowned' by Khal Drogo. Now only two things are on his mind - revenge and the Iron Throne.
1. Fire Cannot Kill A Dragon

_The Beggar King_

_(Chapter 1) – Fire Cannot Kill A Dragon_

His head was burning. The sun was shining brightly, he could feel it on his skin. The sand beneath him was pleasantly warm. There was something on his face which prevented him from seeing the sun, so he raised one hand from the sand and tried to lift it. Oh, wait – he couldn't. From now on this would stay on his face and remind him of what had happened to him and why. While trying to lift himself up from the ground, the memories came back to his mind – of Penthos, the town across the Narrow Sea, of his sister with her silvery- white hair, and mostly – of her savage husband who took her but did not give him what he desired. Well, he will be dead soon; dead by his hand - he was the true King after all, and true kings take what they want. Right now everything Viserys Targaryen wanted was revenge. Revenge to everyone who betrayed him – to Jorah Mormont, who promised to serve him but chose his sister instead, to the man named Khal Drogo who almost killed him and because of whom he was in the middle of nowhere alone. And to Daenerys – yes, his sister – she had to pay for letting her husband 'crown' him. After that he would take back what was rightfully his – the Seven Kingdoms and the Iron Throne. And then, only then, will he have a real crown and be at peace. The man tried to stand up. He lost balance but little by little started to come round and made a little, hesitant step. After that he made one more, and one more. After looking around him, he realized that he was in a desert.

"What is this godforsaken place?" Viserys asked himself. "Oh, probably the lands of that savage who tried to kill me. He did try, but all he managed to achieve is wake the dragon. I am Viserys III Targaryen and will take what is mine, with fire and blood." After saying that, he fell to the ground again because he was powerless from all the time spent in the desert.

"Get up, Viserys", he said to himself. "Get up, you are the blood of the dragon, and the fire cannot kill a dragon. The sun cannot harm me." He rose again. He stood still and closed his eye. His other one was forever closed now because of the molten gold on his head. But the one left was purple as a flower and full of little red veins, thirsty for blood. The Rightful King took a deep breath three times then opened his eyes. It was better now, his sight was not blurred anymore.

"Now what?" he wondered. "There has to be a way out of here and I better find it before any other savages that walk this desert find me. I will not be able to defeat them on my own. Also, I am King, my Kingsguard should fight them instead of me." Suddenly another doze of powerlessness reminded him that he was actually alone in the middle of nowhere without company, without a Kingsguard, without a throne. He lost balance again but managed to keep up. "A little water wouldn't be bad", he said. "In my kingdom there is plenty of water, plenty – in the lands of Riverrun, all over Dragonstone, in the river Trident…" The river Trident – this sounded familiar to him. What does this name have to do with him? After some moments of thinking, it came to him – the Trident was the place where his brother, the mighty Rhaegar Targaryen had died, killed by Robert Baratheon the Usurper, the one who was still sitting on the Iron Throne. His Iron Throne.

"Rhaegar fell in the water when he was attacked, water killed him. Maybe it will kill me too. Fire, fire is my only hope. I am the blood of the Dragon, and the fire cannot kill a dragon". Despite feeling weak, he decided to continue walking because the Dothraki sea had to end somewhere after all. The burning rays of the sun made his head very hot. He tore his shirt's sleeve and tied it on his forehead in a way that hid the disfigured part of his face. There was not much of his once beautiful silver-white hair left. He tore his other sleeve and tied whatever was left from his hair in a tail. "It will grow again, it has to", he said, full of hope. "The Seven Kingdoms should not have a bald king." Suddenly he realized that the shirt he was wearing was given to him by Daenerys. Daenerys Targaryen, his sister, who was the only one who cared about him. Once.

"Now she is with her savage husband and does not care about me. She let him kill me and I am sure she did not even ask what happened to me after that. That's OK, she will pay too, she will. She will pay with fire and blood. She probably thinks I am dead, which is understandable – everyone would have died from molten gold. But not me. Looks like I am a true dragon after all. "

A smile appeared on the half of his face – something which had not happened for a long time.

"But the real and most sincere smile on my face will be the one after your death, Daenerys. Yours and the ones of your savage husband and your horrid little bastard."

Viserys looked ahead of him. Nothing except some stones and sand was covering the earth. He was not sure which way to go (not that there were any particular ways to take). He looked at the sun and saw it was almost sundown.

"The sun sets on the west. So east will be my road. Right towards the rising of the sun. I will rise in the same way one day…. One day…"He felt a little stream of power coming to him and started walking carefully. The sand was hot but it didn't burn him (he was a dragon after all, if you haven't already understood).

"You were right, Daenerys. Fire cannot kill a dragon" repeated he as he strode off to the east where the sun would rise in the morning.


	2. A Dream Of A Faraway Place

_(Chapter 2) – A Dream Of A Faraway Place_

He was flying over lands of endless green. Every kingdom, every palace looked like little flickering dots at this height. The wind was blowing gently in his silver hair and the smell of sea water was felt everywhere.

"The sea is near. Dragonstone is near" he said, looking ahead to the little piece of land visible through the morning fog. Several minutes later the fog receded, revealing large dragon statues on a castle up a large rock. Three waterfalls were running wildly around the castle.

"My home, my stolen home" Viserys said to himself while descending to the ground. He noticed someone coming out of the castle. A man wearing a crown looked up and shouted:

"A dragon! That is impossible! Who are you?"

Viserys stepped from the back of the dragon to the ground. The two men looked at each other and finally the man with the crown said:

"You! But you were dead!"

"I thought you were a man who did not believe in ghosts, Stannis Baratheon. You believe only in shadows. You and your servant – the Asshai witch. And you will soon become exactly what you believe in – shadows…"

"I am not afraid of you, Targaryen boy, you do not even know how to wield a sword!" said king Stannis angrily.

"Give me back my home and you will live, Stannis. Take your whore and your wife and daughter and leave this place to the one to whom it really belongs."

"I must admit that you have style, boy. Arriving like that." said Stannis pointing at the dragon. "But you cannot scare me. I am a Baratheon, mine is the fury."

"And mine is the dragon. I repeat – if you want to live, get out of here as soon as possible."

"What are you going to do, boy? Threaten me to death?" said Stannis sarcastically.

Viserys looked at the dragon with his vengeful eyes. The animal looked back at him and understood his command. Seconds later, Stannis Baratheon was burning from head to toe in powerful red flames, screaming in agony.

"Fire." said Viserys calmly.

Stannis' screams were heard in the castle and several minutes later Melisandre came out in her red nightgown.

"The young Targaryen has come for revenge. You will not get it, boy"

"We'll see about that, Asshai witch. Get out of here or you will end up like him."

"Fire cannot hurt me, boy."

"Neither can it hurt me, witch."

"Many men have tried to kill me, Viserys. What makes you think that you will succeed?"

"This!" said Viserys after Melisandre was fiercely knocked down by something that flew above her and landed next to Viserys. Another dragon came, ridden by Daenerys, his sister. She descended the dragon and took her place next to her borther. The red priestess shouted something they could not hear and fire came out and she pointed it to the sister. It reached Daenerys, but she was unhurt – the flames only touched her and somehow projected back to Melisandre. The witch screamed and went into the river to extinguish the fire. Daenerys jumped after her and seconds later she emerged out of the water, pressing Melisandre's head in the deep.

"Bad decision, witch. You desecrated this place. It's time to die!" said Daenerys, pressing the red-headed woman deeper into the water. Several minutes later the priestess stopped struggling and was dead. Fire could not kill her, but water could. Daenerys came out of the water dragging the body out and cut the head. Blood started flowing down the slope.

"Blood." said Viserys. "Good job, little sister. Now come here."

She came to him. They both drew out swords, pinned them one next to the other in the ground, took each other's hands and chanted "We are Targaryens and we take what is ours with fire and blood."

A sudden cold chill came to him. He started in his sleep and opened his eye. He was in the desert. Alone. The sun had set several hours ago and he was helpless without fire around. He was also freezing in the cold night. His had torn his shirt's sleeves and now his hands were cold. Nothing could be seen around. The sunrise was still far away in time. Viserys tried to change his position on the large stone he had found while walking for several hours. He chose it for his nightcamp because it was relatively hidden and he hoped that no animal or savage would find him there. If he had to be honest, however, wild animals and savages were not what worried him at that moment. He was thinking only about his dream.

"Just a dream," he said to himself. "just a goddamn dream."

What was the meaning of this dream? Was it a prophecy? Was it a warning?

"I had a dragon. My sister did too. This can't have been a prophecy, dragons do not exist anymore. Plus, I will kill my sister when I find her, she will not take my crown. But how can I find her? I am in the middle of nowhere, trying to find a way out of this uncivilized, wild place. I cannot even make a fire! I will have to continue walking and walking until I find a place where there is actually somebody."

He tried to convince himself that this was just a dream but something was telling him it was more than that. Why was Stannis Baratheon wearing a crown? Where was the Usurper? Where was the Kingslayer, the man who killed his father?

"I will find them one day. And I will kill them all."

Another thing that bothered him was the fact that his sister was resistant to fire. And, the most intriguing thing – he could see with both his eyes.

"What does this mean? Will I ever get this thing off my head? Will I be able to see with both my eyes someday?"

From all the tension that these questions induced in his mind, he felt dizzy. Another problem arose now – he was hungry.

"I have to find something or starvation will finish me" he said to himself. "The sun is almost up. I will wait a little and continue on. If I do not freeze to death first."

He crossed his hands and tried to get warm but his clothes were too light to warm him.

"I am the blood of the Dragon" said he "The blood of the Dragon does not freeze."

The young Targaryen huddled on the one side of the stone.

The wind was carrying the phrase "I am the blood of the Dragon. The blood of the Dragon does not freeze" across the desert and soon it echoed around him and helped him gather a little courage while waiting for the sun to rise.


	3. The Gods Always Help The True King

_(Chapter 3) – The Gods Always Help The True King_

When the first rays of the sun appeared, Viserys started feeling a little warmer and got up. He decided to keep walking even though his strength had started to leave him because the Seven Kingdoms need their king and the Dothraki have to get what they deserve.

"Everybody said I was mad, just like my father had been. And everybody still thinks that I am going to be the second Mad King. I may be mad, but my madness is caused by the bastards who took my throne, my home and my family and is the only thing that will save me now." he said to himself.

He stopped for a moment to think. All he could see ahead was sand. Nothing could be seen for miles ahead, and Viserys knew that if he could not find food soon he would probably starve to death and dying in the Dothraki desert would be the most ridiculous way to leave the kingdoms in the hands of usurpers.

When he made his next top three hours had passed. He found another large stone, just like the one he slept on, and decided to sit there for a while to make his head stop spinning. While stepping heavily in the sand towards the stone, he heard a noise. A loud, piercing noise that only a bird could make. Suddenly, a falcon landed on the stone where he was about to sit.

"Where the hell did that falcon come from?" he asked himself. "Wait… a bird… No, I couldn't…. No, I have to, or I am going to die in this godforsaken place. This must be a sign from the Gods, they send help to the true king… But how can I reach it without it flying away?"

Suddenly an idea came to him. He took the rest of his shirt off and quietly and carefully stepped towards the stone. The falcon made another loud noise and started cleaning its feathers. This was the best moment. Viserys made one more step. The blood was pulsing in his veins and for several minutes he felt a flow of energy. His heartbeat was rising, his hands were shaking - if he missed right now this would be his end.

He covered the falcon with the shirt and jumped on the stone. The bird started to struggle and the noise it made pierced the air and went across the desert. His hands were shaking, but he told himself that he had to keep his grip tight. The beak of the falcon tore the shirt and scratched his hand. Viserys screamed, but kept on holding tight.

"My madness is what will save me" he said. He had to strangle it – he could see no other way. The falcon was fiercely struggling and obviously had no intention of giving him the chance to kill it. Then another idea came to him – he sat on the stone, put his legs around the bird and it was made to stand still. Then the true king grabbed his neck and twisted it. The bird made its last scream and the struggle stopped. He took the shirt off the bird and saw blood stains on it. They were from his scratched hand. He tore another part of it and tied it around his bleeding hand.

"The rest of this is useless." He said and threw the shirt away. "I will freeze to death at night, but I do not need this anymore… I killed the bird… I… I killed it… My madness is what will save me…"

Then he stared at the bird's corpse and started taking off its feathers. He had a certain experience of eating raw animal meat from the time he and his sister were exiles in the Free Cities – he often had to kill animals on the streets so that they could eat.

"My madness is what will save me…" he kept on talking.

After finishing this, he just took the bird and bit a part of its neck. Blood started flowing to the stone's surface. Viserys started drinking it till he quenched his thirst a little. Then he continued biting the meat until he ate almost all of it. After that he drank more blood that was flowing from the body. It was streaming down his chest, but he did not care, all he kept thinking about was drinking.

After the meat fed him and the blood quenched his thirst, he got up and felt strong again. He would be able to walk for the rest of the day.

"I guess I get to live one more day. May the Gods send something tomorrow." Said he and tried to wipe all the blood from his body. It had, however, dried and its marks were all over his chest.

After walking for what seemed to him an eternity, he saw something ahead. It was green and small.

"It may be another sign from the Gods" thought Viserys. "they always help the ture king, so I have to see what it is."

He started walking quickly and reached the green thing, which turned out to be a little bush.

"A plant. This means that the end of this goddamn desert should be near."

This gave him more strength. He continued walking for some time and finally came up to something his eyes could not believe – a road.

"A road? Where the hell am I? The Gods showed me the way, they always help the true king…"

He took the road even though he knew that enemies could find him. After a while he heard a sound similar to horse hoofs. No, it was not similar – it was exactly the same. A horseman was coming down the road and going in his direction. He tried to run but realized it was useless – horses are always faster and sooner or later the rider would catch up on him. And there was no way he would stray from the road and go back to the desert. So he waited. Several minutes later the horseman reached him and stopped. He had a hood, so his face could not be seen.

"Who are you, young man, and why are you going this long way on foot?" asked the man in the common tongue.

"I got lost in the desert. I was a hostage of the Dothraki but I managed to escape", lied Viserys. He was mad, but not stupid. He knew he should be cautious.

"Is that why have molten gold on your head and blood on your chest?" asked the man.

"Yes, they tortured me and tried to kill me."

"How come you're alive? Isn't your brain dead by the molten gold?"

"No, but your brain will be dead if you continue asking stupid questions" said Viserys only to himself "I am the blood of the Dragon, you fool. That is why I am alive. If you knew who I am, you would never talk like that, idiot."

The told him aloud:

"I don't know how I survived either. I woke up in the desert and I have been roaming for three days. You are the first person I meet here…"

"Poor boy… This gold on his head makes him repulsive and suspicious, but I pity him", said the man to himself. "Should I take the risk and help him?" he wondered.

Both men stood and watched each other for some time. Then the man said: "Okay, boy, I will help you. Get on the horse behind me and hold tight. But before you do that, tell me your name."

"Rys, sir, my name is Rys," said Vsierys. He decided that he should not give his real name at any cost. May I ask what is yours, sir?"

"I am not a sir, boy. My name is Syrio. Syrio Forel."


	4. Voices All Around

_(Chapter 4) – Voices All Around_

They were riding for about three hours, but to the young Targaryen they seemed like an eternity – they passed nothing but desert and in front of them was only a long straight road. The sun was right over their heads, which he knew meant it had passed noon. The hot rays were caressing his skin and the scratches the falcon had caused him were starting to heal (or at least they did not hurt anymore). The young prince was thinking again – after a saviour came, he was thinking what to do next and was hesitating if he could trust that man.

"He looks like a person from the Free Cities, they usually wear hoods. But he can also be a man sent by the Usurper. I have to keep my eyes wide open…"

"We're almost there" said the man named Syrio Forel.

"Where?" asked Viserys.

"To the place I told you about – It's a cave, you'll see it."

"What actually are you doing in the desert?"

"Boy, I know you have many questions, but please leave them for when we arrive." said the hooded man.

"If he knew who I am he wouldn't be telling me to shut up" said Viserys to himself. But after thinking for a second added "But he would probably kill me."

After about half an hour they arrived to a place where two big caves were towering over the road and the end of the desert. They descended the horse and went in. Viserys followed him. The cave was wide, there was enough space to sit and sleep.

"We will spend the night here", said Syrio."First we will have dinner and then you can ask your questions." He lifted what looked like a little door on the floor of the cave and drew some meat out of it.

"What is this?" asked Viserys a little disgusted.

"This, boy, is a horse. This is what you will eat, no matter if you want to or not, because that's all I have left here. When we reach Braavos at noon tomorrow we will have a proper meal."

"Braavos? I thought we were going to Pentos…"

"Why, boy? Do you want to meet somebody there?"

Viserys thought about Illyrio Mopatis, the magister. "I have to see him, he will know what to do… But if I say his name, this man will get suspicious…"

Suddenly a noise was heard – a wild scream, piercing like a knife the darkness of the desert. A horn blow followed the scream.

"What is that?" asked Viseyrs. "The Dothraki?" and he went quickly over a large stone and knelt behind it.

"Do not panic, boy, it is not them. This is the horn of another barbaric tribe who roam the desert at night. The Kaltheki. Can you fight, Rys?"

"I haven't fought in a long time, sir. I was seven when my family was sent in exile. Since then I haven't wielded a sword." said Viserys coming out from behind the rock.

"You'll catch up quickly, I am sure. Here" said Syrio Forel and gave him a sword.

"B-b-but I…"

In that second loud screams were heard right outside the cave. The Kaltheki were right in front of them. They were trapped and no way out was to be found except to fight them. Viserys took his sword with shaking hands and said to himself "I am the blood of the Dragon. The blood of the Dragon is not afraid. I am Rhaegar's brother and I am not afraid…."

He and Syrio looked at each other and went to face the Kaltheki.

Strange noises were coming from a distance. Sounded like voices. They were getting closer and closer. Viserys could distinguish between a male and a female voice. They came next to him and although he wanted to open his eyes to see who is talking, he decided to pretend to be asleep because he was feeling too weak to move.

"Master, listen to me" a girl was whispering "There was a little lock of hair on his head which the gold has not covered and it is silvery- blond, almost white. Look" she said and Viserys presumed that she was showing it to him. "I haven't seen hair this colour before" she said. "Be careful with him, Master."

"This boy cannot harm me, Yvaine. He cannot even wield a sword properly. He just had bad luck to end up at the Dothraki sea. And, it was not very kind of you to cut his hair."

"I am sorry, Master. I just thought that he won't be needing it because he has this …thing on his head."

Viserys wanted to jump, catch her by the neck and strangle her. "How dare she cut my hair? I will kill her when I get up!"

"Master, one more thing – will he be able to get this thing off his head?" asked the girl.

"If you find a dragon, he will, Yvaine. Only dragon fire can get the gold off his face."

"So, this means.. "

"Yes, his face will be disfigured forever." said Syrio and went out of the room where Viserys was lying.

When he heard that, the young prince felt like all the world is crashing down. "I will be a disfigured king" he said to himself" they will laugh at me again the same way they did when I was little…" A little tear ran down the unharmed side of his face. Suddenly he felt weaker and weaker and finally fell asleep.

"Boy, are you okay?" he heard a familiar voice. "Boy?"

Viserys opened his eye. He was lying in a bed, next to him there was a big bowl of water which had become red from all the blood. Syrio Forel was looking at him worriedly.

"What happened? Where am I? Did we fight off the savages?"

"Actually, I did." said Syrio. "You fought as much as you could, but somebody hit you in the head and you fell. You had a sword wound, but it was not deep. You will be able to walk in two or three days. I carried you all the way here on the horse and managed to save you. We are in Braavos right now. In my house."

"In Braavos? But you said that we needed several more hours to get there…"

"You were unconscious almost two days. I was getting worried. And you were dreaming before I woke you up."

At the next moment a brunette girl went into the room and Syrio asked her to come forward.

"This is Yvaine. She cleaned your wounds and will help you until you get better. If you need something just ask her. In two days you will be much better and we will start practicing." said Syrio and made for the door.

"Thank you, sir." said Viserys and he was about to close his eyes and sleep for a little more, until he realized…

"Wait, sir." he said and Syrio stopped right at the door. "What do you mean by 'practicing'?"

"I mean practicing your fighting skills. I am a teacher and believe me, you were not very helpful in battle. And the king of the Seven Kingdoms should be able to fight."

"The… what do you mean, sir?"

"Stop calling me sir, Your Majesty. You had better start thinking about how you will get your Kingdom back." Said Syrio, then bowed and smiled. Viserys looked at him in astonishment, but before being able to say anything, Syrio went out of the room.


	5. Questions, Answers and Promises

_Questions, Answers And Promises_

Viserys kept looking at the place where Syrio had stood until five minutes ago with astonishment which he doubted he had ever experienced before. He had fallen deep in thought when a noise startled him – Yvaine had broken a little beautiful vase.

"I am sorry if I startled you, Your Majesty, I'll clean up right away." she said.

"No, leave that. Come here." Viserys told her.

The girl came next to his bed and all of a sudden he jumped out of it, grabbed her by the neck and pushed her to the wall.

"How do you and Syrio Forel know who I am?" he yelled. "How?!"

His purple eye was crazily moving in all directions and a spark like a red flame appeared. Yvaine was starting to run out of breath.

"Calm down, Your Majesty, or I will use force." she said.

Viserys started laughing.

"Do you know what happens to people who use force against their King? I believe you do."

"You're not a King yet, Viserys." said Yvaine and before he could realize what was happening she bit him on the arm, caught it and twisted it. The rightful king screamed. The pain was unbearable. That girl would pay for daring to do that!

Suddenly a noise was heard in the hallway and Syrio entered the room. The pain in the arm stopped and when Viserys opened his eyes he saw Syrio standing between him and Yvaine and yelled:

"She twisted my arm! She has to die!"

"Death penalty is not always the right strategy, Your Majesty." said Syrio.

"It is! It is the only way to show everyone how they should behave before their king!"

"VISERYS !" yelled Syrio and lifted a sword against him. "Calm down and listen to me very carefully – we call you Your Majesty out of courtesy, but you are no king yet, and in order to become one, you need our help. This means you will have to stop behaving like a maniac and do what you are told, understood? Now go back to your bed, you need to rest two days more!"

Viserys obeyed. He was burning with anger and wanted to kill them both there and then, but the sword pointed at him scared him more or less, especially when it was in Syrio's hands.

"Now is the time for questions and answers, but no more murder attempts from both of you, am I clear?"

"Yes, Sir." said Yvaine. "If he does not try to kill me, I will not try to defend myself."

"Shut up you…" Viserys tried to say but Syrio interrupted him:

"Enough! Yvaine, sit over there."

The girl took the chair Syrio was pointing at and sat at the other end of the room.

"Now it is time to finally get everything clear. You ask first, Viserys."

"Who in Aegon's name are you? Both of you!" asked Viserys.

"As I already told you, my name is Syrio Forel. I am from Braavos and I am a master fencer. I was First Sword of Braavos once. This is Yvaine, she is from Westeros, just like you. She is a bastard child of Oberyn Martell, his ninth illegitimate daughter no one knows about."

"She's a daughter of the Red Viper? That explains the intolerable character." said Viserys. Then asked:

"Why are you so eager to help me? What is your hidden motive?"

"I do not have one," said Syrio. "The moment your father died I thought that your brother Rhaegar would be crowned King because he was not mad, he would have been the perfect ruler, he was perfect in every way. I thought that plans were made to kill your father in order for your brother to be crowned. I thought the dynasty should continue its reign because it is the way the Gods want it. It really is the will of the Seven, but, sadly, Robert Baratheon killed Rhaegar and ascended the throne. Then I was sure that his peaceful reign would not last long and something would happen some day. And it did – now Westeros is divided, there are five kings who fight between each other without having the right to pretend for the throne. The seven kingdoms are shattered, many innocent are dying because of those bastards who divided Westeros because of their insatiable greed. The rightful dynasty should come back or else everything will be lost."

"My kingdom is divided?" shouted Viserys angrily: "How dare they tear my kingdom apart?"

"It is divided indeed, and chaos reigns over the land. I swear I will help you get the throne back, but you must promise me a thing in return."

"What?" asked Viserys.

"You must promise me that you will be patient, that you will never shout to me or to Yvaine like that, that you will follow my advice and start learning some things the moment you are ready to walk again."

"What things?" asked the rightful king.

"First I will teach you to fight properly. I will show you how to be quieter that shadows. Also you will have to learn to control your anger and some other things I will tell you about when it is time."

"I am afraid I cannot promise you patience, I have waited long enough. I cannot anymore."

"Oh, you can, believe me. If you are not patient, consider your wish lost forever. And do you agree to start learning how to fight?"

"I do. I want you to teach me. As for the patience … I will try, I just… "

A tear blurred his sight but he quickly tried to hide it. A king does not cry in front of people.

"I just want my revenge and my kingdom…"

"I know that, Your Majesty," said Syrio "but in order to become king you have to start behaving like one. And I do not mean like the Mad king – you have to be a just and honest ruler. And a true ruler cares about his people more than he cares about himself. We believe in you and I am sure you will not disappoint us. Remember that for now, this will be your fist lesson. That is it for today. Now Yvaine will clean up your wounds again and you will rest. In two days you will walk again and we will start training. I will come to see how you are from time to time. Now I should go, I have some work to do."

Syrio reached the door but before opening it, he turned to Viserys and said:

"We can start your … "change" by doing this – "he said and made a sign to Yvaine to come closer. " – Now, you have to apologise to her."

"Me? Why? She twisted my arm!" said Viserys indignantly.

"Do you remember what I just told you? Please repeat it."

"A true ruler cares about his people more than he cares about himself." repeated the young Targaryen.

"Correct. Now, apologise to her."

"I am sorry" muttered Viserys.

"Louder." Said Syrio. "When you apologise you should look her in the eyes and show her that you mean it."

Viserys looked at Yvaine. Her eyes were light brown, but there was something very beautiful about them.

"Elia Martell had almost the same eyes. I remember how Rhaegar told me once that women with such eyes were the most beautiful ones… This girl is beautiful, I must admit…" said Viserys to himself.

"My king?" said Syrio. "Do you hear me?"

"I do." Said Viserys and tried to shake off of the charm of the girl. He looked at her again and said:

"I am sorry I raised a hand against you. I will not do it anymore."

Yvaine looked at him too and replied:

"I forgive you, Your Majesty, and in turn I apologise for twisting your arm. I just tried to defend myself. Many men have tried to harm or use me and I am not used to letting them do it." She said and bowed to him.

"Stand up, Yvaine. You do not need to bow yet, girl." said Syrio. "See, Viserys, a simple apology can mean a lot. If you admit your mistakes, the person against you will admit theirs in return. This was good to begin with. Now I leave you in her hands and I will see you tomorrow."

After Syrio left the room, Yvaine started to prepare something that looked like a medicine. Several minutes later she sat on Viserys's bed and said:

"Now I have to clean your wound with this, Your Majesty. It stings but you'll have to bear with me."

Then she put some of the medicine on a clean bandage and pressed it against his stomach. Viserys screamed in agony. The pain was unbearable.

"I will remove it now, but I have to repeat this at least three more times. If you want, we can try this – you will ask me something and I will talk to you so that I can distract your mind from the pain. Do you like the idea, Your Majesty?" Yvaine asked.

Viserys was fierce but he said to himself:

"I am the blood of the Dragon. The blood of the Dragon does not complain."

Then he said to her:

"If it will help, do it!"

"Ask me something, then" she replied.

"If you are Oberyn Martell's daughter, why are you here and why does no one know about you?"

"I am here because I killed a man. A man who tried to use me to satisfy his animal instincts. No one knows about me except for my father. He helped me escape and come here. My mother was killed in Dorne. She took the blame for me and everybody thought that she killed the man. I still cannot forgive this to myself. I cannot forgive myself that I let her take my blame…"

Viserys was listening so intently that he had forgotten about the pain for a moment until it hit him again and reminded him of itself. He screamed again.

Then he took a deep breath and said:

"You seem to be a girl who dares do a lot of things that are not expected of you. Why?"

"I do not want to be like the others. I am a different person, I have my own dreams, desires and opinion and I always demand respect from everybody, especially men. After that one attacked me, I hardly trust men. That is why I twisted your hand. I have developed an instinct to defend myself."

Viserys looked at her.

"And how will a girl like you, a girl that does not obey anyone, obey a king?"

"Depends on the king" answered the girl and smiled lightly.

"If I am the king?"

"If you want respect, you will have to earn it, Your Majesty." she said. "If you can change and try to do what Syrio told you, you may be a good king. And I may obey you, who knows." she smiled again.

"A bold answer." replied Viserys. "I have never met a girl like you before."

"Like me? What am I?" asked Yvaine while she finished cleaning the wound and put new bandages on it.

"Disobedient" said Viserys.

"I may be obedient, if I find the right man to tame me" she replied. "Now, I have finished cleaning the wound. You should get some sleep, Your Majesty."

She went out of the room and closed the door. Long after she left Viserys lied in the dark and repeated to himself:

"A true ruler cares more about his people than about himself… If you want respect, you have to earn it…"

His whispers echoed in the dark but soon faded and his even, calmer breathing replaced them.


	6. Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word

_(Chapter 6) – "Sorry" Seems To Be The Hardest Word_

Viserys was getting ready to go out for the first time since he was rescued in the desert. After a week of lying in bed he was very eager to see daylight again. Not that being taken care of by Yvaine was bad, he was just getting bored of all the lying. A kingdom was waiting for him and he had to learn to fight again.

The first rays of the sun felt warm on his face. He hated the ugly turban-like black bandana he had to wear, but he was told that the gold on his head would raise suspicion and he was forced to wear it. When he became king he would find a better way to cover this hideous helmet of gold. The gold at the side of his face was masked by a substance he did not know, but it was the perfect disguise – he was to tell everyone that greyscale had scarred him as a young boy (the substance Yvaine used on him had the same grey color).

While walking through the yard of the little house they were in, he remembered the house with the red door there in Braavos where he and his sister had grown up under the care of Ser Willem Darry of the Kingsguard. He wondered what had happened to this house. The dragon prince also thought of his sister and hw to get his revenge on her husband when he reached the place where the training was to take place.

"Good morning, Your Grace. How does it feel to be out in the open again?" asked Syrio Forel.

"Warm," answered Viserys. "Just how I like it. Are we starting?"

"We are. Yvaine has the swords ready."

"Yvaine?"

"Yes, Your Grace. She will train with you and me."

"What?" Viserys could feel the tone of his voice rising. "Women do not fight! Are you trying to waste my time here?"

Syrio saw the fiery notes in his eyes and decided to speak before the dragon prince got angry again:

"She has the right to learn as much as you do. Once I taught another girl to fight and she was better than many men I have seen. Also, you are not king yet, and cannot command me like this. I will serve you nobly and bravely, but your attitudes must change, my lord. Your father liked to remind everyone that he was king and this did not do him good. You have a long way to go until you become the one who everyone will respect and be loyal to. I have already told you that. You can be like your brother Rhaegar, you can overcome the madness that had overpowered you, but you need to be strong and willing to learn. Am I clear?"

"You are." answered Viserys a little bored. He knew he had to listen to Syrio's sermons every time and follow his advice even if he did not like it, because otherwise he would be alone and with no chance of getting his kingdom back. Also, if he had to be honest, he did not want to be like his father.

Yvaine arrived, carrying two wooden swords.

"Here's your sword, Your Grace." she said. Her long hair was tied in a braid and her deep brown eyes were looking at him with certain determination and excitement.

"Call me Viserys," he said, taking the sword from her hand. "That is my name."

"I beg your pardon?"

"That is my name. I am starting to learn."

"Learn what, Your Grace?" she asked.

"How to be a better … person." He answered. He would have said "king", but remembered what Syrio had told him. "I am no higher than you, call me by my name."

"I will, V… Viserys" Yvaine said.

The training began. It turned out he hadn't completely forgotten some of the basics, but it was much harder than he had expected. On top of it all Yvaine seemed to learn faster than him. At one moment he even started regretting his decision to let her call him by name. When she defeated him for the fifth time, he started getting angry and even her sweet smell of flowers could not prevent the dragon from waking. He wanted to hit her with the sword, but managed to throw it against the wall. Then Yvaine looked at him with both disbelief and disappointment.

"You were going to throw the sword at me, weren't you, _Viserys_?" she asked in an ice-cold tone, and emphasized on his name with the same coldness. Then she threw her sword on the ground and said: "I am done for today!" and went inside.

"You must apologize right now, Viserys." Syrio told him.

"She's a girl and yet she is better than me! Why do you want me to train with her? So that I can see how bad I am and feel embarrassed?" asked the dragon prince angrily.

"So that you can both learn better! I never mean to make anyone feel embarrassed. I am strongly against discouraging people. Yvaine is a daughter of Oberyn Martell, the Red Viper of Dorne, it is in her blood to fight, that is why she understands faster. Your father was no warrior, Viserys, and your brother trained really hard to become one. This is only the first training, you shall learn gradually. Just be patient."

When the urge to hit Syrio with the sword faded, Viserys decided that he should really take control of himself. The fact that this father didn't fight and his brother learned hard was a relief in a way – at least he was not the only one to suffer the humiliation.

"I will take control of myself, I am sorry" he apologized, looking down.

"I believe you will, my lord, but I am not the one you should apologize to."

Viserys nodded and went back to the house. He stopped in front of Yvaine's door and suddenly realized that he had never apologized to a woman before and actually had no idea how to do it. Every time he had a fight with his sister she was the one who came back crying and apologizing_. "Although maybe it was my fault all the time. Maybe I was the one who had to do it…"_ he thought, but this did not make him feel better. He took a deep breath and knocked on the door, but got no reply. It was unlocked, so he entered the room. Yvaine was sitting in a chair and looking into a mirror. Her long hair was disheveled, as if she had made it like this out of anger. It fell on her back and shoulders.

Viserys spoke: "Yvaine, I ..."

"I don't want to listen to you." She said and turned around to him. Her voice was calm but cold and her eyes were fluffy because of the tears she had shed. "You think no one has suffered the way you did because of your family. Well, guess what – other people suffer too. I killed a man because he killed my mother and tried to rape and kill me. My mother died because she couldn't fight. Everything my father could do was help me escape. I have no one except Syrio and maybe you. I have been dreaming of being able to fight for a long time and this morning, when for the first time in two years I felt good because I felt I served a purpose, I did something meaningful, you ruined it."

"I… I am… sorry" replied Viserys and looked her in the eyes so that she knew he meant it. "I really am. I will take control of myself from now on. I promise."

"It is very easy to promise. I will fully forgive you when I see you are really changing. Otherwise do not beg me for forgiveness. Now please leave."

He raised his hand and tried to take away the tear on her cheek, but she slapped him and said:

"Please, leave."

He took away his hand and left the room. He closed the door of his chamber and sat on the bed. The dragon prince was just starting to realize how hard it is to tell someone you are sorry. He had never done it before, to anyone. Suddenly he remembered how everyone he had in his life was angry at him till their last minutes together. Just because he did not say that he was sorry. His brother Rhaegar had shouted at him that he could not take him to fight at the Trident because fighting was not a joke. He had told him that he was still too young to fight and when he came back he would train him himself. Vserys had hidden his helm so that he does not go to war, but Rhaegar did not like that, scolded him and left before Viserys could say he was sorry. He never had the chance to because Rhaegar never came back. Viserys felt pain in his heart, as if a dagger was piercing him.

Later Rhaegar's wife, Princess Elia, had also scolded him because he had promised to look after his little nephew Aegon but he had failed to catch the child while it was playing and it fell and bruised its knee. After that he had chased away his niece's kitten, Balerion, because it had gone through his books and toys and ruined their order. Rhaenys told her mother and Elia scolded him and told him to go to his room. He never apologized because the next day he and his mother were taken by Ser Willem Darry and led to Dragonstone. Another dagger-like pain pierced him.

Before he left his father, Aerys II had screamed at him that he should go to Dragonstone with his mother, but not with Elia, because he needed her. Viserys had tried to call Elia, but his father went mad again, hit him and told Willem Darry to go right away. Aerys' last words to him were full of scorn and anger. He didn't say he was sorry to him too. The third dagger was piercing its way through his body to his heart.

When his mother gave birth to his sister she told him to look after her because she will not survive. He got angry and said that he would never forgive her if she died and left him and the child alone. When his sister was given her name he decided to go and apologize to his mother, but she was already dead. Another unsaid apology, another strong feeling of pain.

He had also offended the man who had been looking after him and Daenerys, Ser Willem Darry. The man died of old age and the last thing he heard from Viserys was that he was not a true knight because true knights did not let death take them. When Viserys realized how rude his words had been Ser Willem was already dead. One more apology left unsaid. Once again. One more dagger in his heart.

Suddenly many memories of his sister crying came back haunting him. Every time she made him angry he had beat her. He had kicked her and pulled her hair. And not once did he ever think that it was not her fault. And the last thing he ever told Daenerys was that he wanted his crown but not before he threatened to cut her baby out of her belly. And before Drogo poured the gold on his head her sister was looking at him with a face that said: "_I do not love you anymore, after all that you did to me._" And she was right, she was…

Now the pain was unbearable. Now a thousand daggers were going through his skin and piercing him. He wanted to scream at the top of his lungs, but he could not. That is why he took a pillow and buried his face in it to muffle his cries. Tears were flowing like a waterfall. He couldn't even apologize to Daenerys for trying to steal her dragon eggs and to Jorah for offending him.

"_I tried to steal her eggs and sell them. Looks like I am a beggar after all." _He told himself and his tears started flowing even more. He decided that tomorrow he will admit to Yvaine that he was wrong once again and will do everything to gain her forgiveness. She and Syrio were his close friends now, and he would not lose them the way he lost everyone else in his life. He looked at a little statue of the Seven Gods on his nightstand, rose up, and said: _"I will not lose them for the world… I will always say that I am sorry, I will always do what is right, I promise… I promise, just don't take them away from me… You took everyone else I loved, please have mercy… Gods, please have mercy…"_

Tears were still flowing like waterfalls from his eyes. Even though his right eye was covered with gold, he could still feel the hot tears streaming down under his helmet of gold. He cried and cried until he couldn't breathe anymore and finally his head fell on the pillow and he fell asleep.


End file.
